Discover our three short story collections, each collating six original stories commissioned especially for Audible. Commissioning editor Ellah Wakatama Allfrey explains, "I wanted to invite writers to lead listeners on a journey of discovery, with a focus on the story being read aloud. This was a challenge that all the commissioned writers approached with zeal. Some are writing in a form that will be familiar to fans of their work, others are trying something new."
The Collections
Contemporary Fiction
Claire Fuller and Marina Lewycka explore ‘discovery’ at different times of our lives; Chigozie Obioma and Adam Thirlwell consider long-held desires through ‘destination’; and Sarah Hall and Joanne Harris view ‘arrival’ in negotiating life-changing events.
Science Fiction
Chris Beckett and An Owomoyela use the theme of ‘discovery’ to shape tales of searching; Nikesh Shukla and Lauren Beukes consider ‘destination’ in stories of finding a home; and Ken Liu and Paul Cornell each discuss ‘arrival’.
Crime & Thriller
Ben Okri and Martin Edwards explore ‘discovery' in their stories; Sophie Hannah and Emma Dibdin each draw on ‘destination’ for their tales of painful pasts; and Elly Griffiths and Parker Bilal tackle the theme of ‘arrival’ in their stories.
Why Bard, Jali and Skald?
Every culture had its own 'storyteller', and so we decided to name each of our collections after one of these figures. Skald, named after Old Norse poets, Jali, named after West African oral historians and storytellers, and Bard, named after medieval Gaelic verse-makers."The Bard pays homage to the story-telling and timeless characters of Shakespeare as we bring leading names in Contemporary fiction together in a collection that is wide-ranging in theme and approach. Skald acknowledges the complexity of Norse poets and storytellers as the Crime writers in this collection interrogate our humanity at the points it is most fractured. The Science Fiction Collection, Jali, voyages in the manner of fabled West African storytellers as they brought tales of far away to new audiences.
"In all, this is a celebration of the power of storytelling, and the powerful magic of the human voice."
Ellah Wakatama Allfrey, Commissioning Editor
Why short stories?
We spoke to several narrators of the Bard, Jali and Skald tales to find out why they love short stories.
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